fearofbirds

Q: Apps effected when physically moving Macbook Pro

I am using a 2 year old Macbook Pro running the latest update of OSX El Capitan.

 

I am experiencing a strange issue - when I move my MBP while it is running it effects the apps. Like if i'm watching Netflix in a browser and I move the computer from the table to the couch it refreshes the page or pauses the screen. I'm not touching any keys when this happens - just moving the computer.

 

Previous issue with this MBP also - video was causing the computer to crash. Apple replaced the motherboard. Not sure if this is connected - just thought I better include.

 

Hoping someone can help out!

MacBook Pro with Retina display, OS X Yosemite (10.10.3)

Posted on May 12, 2016 6:25 PM

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Q: Apps effected when physically moving Macbook Pro

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  • by Grant Bennet-Alder,

    Grant Bennet-Alder Grant Bennet-Alder May 12, 2016 9:00 PM in response to fearofbirds
    Level 9 (61,078 points)
    Desktops
    May 12, 2016 9:00 PM in response to fearofbirds

    If you notebook computer has a rotating magnetic drive, that is expected behavior. You have activated a safety mechanism built into your premium-quality Macintosh. This is not a defect.

     

    In Rotating magnetic drives (rather than an SSD), the read/write heads float on a cushion of air just above the surface of the magnetic media. This distance is quite a bit smaller than the width of a human hair.

     

    Playing back movies requires the disk to be actively reading data, which means disk spinning and read/write head in place above the data area.

     

    Moving your Notebook computer while the disk is active can cause surprisingly large forces to be applied to the drive. So large, in fact, that they can cause the read/Write head to crash into the surface of the drive platter, and gouge a groove out of the data area, destroying at least a portion of the data, and sometimes damaging the read/write head.

     

    In order to avoid such serious problems, the rotating drives shipped in Macintosh notebook computers feature Sudden Motion Sensor (SMS). Forces above a very low threshold will cause the drive head to retract to the Safe Landing Zone, and the flow of data will be interrupted until a few seconds after the motion stops.

  • by fearofbirds,

    fearofbirds fearofbirds May 12, 2016 9:03 PM in response to Grant Bennet-Alder
    Level 1 (4 points)
    Notebooks
    May 12, 2016 9:03 PM in response to Grant Bennet-Alder

    Hey - amazing. THank you. That is such a useful answer. I really appreciate it.

    Thanks.

  • by OGELTHORPE,

    OGELTHORPE OGELTHORPE May 13, 2016 3:57 AM in response to Grant Bennet-Alder
    Level 9 (52,516 points)
    Mac OS X
    May 13, 2016 3:57 AM in response to Grant Bennet-Alder

    The OP has a retina MBP which have SSDs.

     

    Ciao.

  • by OGELTHORPE,

    OGELTHORPE OGELTHORPE May 13, 2016 4:01 AM in response to fearofbirds
    Level 9 (52,516 points)
    Mac OS X
    May 13, 2016 4:01 AM in response to fearofbirds

    If the phenomenon is always repeatable, it suggests a bad connection.  Your best option is an appointment at an Apple store genus bar for a FREE evaluation.

     

    You could run an Apple Hardware Test or Diagnostics depending upon the exact model of your MBP:

     

    https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT201257

     

    https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT202731

     

    Ciao.